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Recovering the Sacred: The Power of Naming and Claiming

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Two-time Green Party Vice Presidential candidate Winona LaDuke presents Recovering The Sacred: The Power Of Naming And Claiming, a discussion of the struggles Native Americans have made particularly in modern history to reclaim their rights and cave a path that balances personal, ecological, and cultural integrity. From "Vampire" biopiracy incidents such as taking samples of Native Blood under the pretext that it will be used to research diabetes and selling it to bidders who actually use it as evidence for the Bering Strait land bridge theory - in direct conflict with the religious beliefs of those who provided the donation - to corrupting public regard of Native tribes through using their names at sporting events (it would be unthinkable to wave crucifixes or the Torah at heated game, yet spiritual Native American objects such as the feather headdress are freely worn), to modern land grabs for any coal, oil, or valuable materials remaining on any Native reservation and more, Recovering The Sacred sheds a spotlight on the disdainful to hostile manner in which America regards its Native peoples. A carefully researched and persuasively presented accounting of the inequities of the past, what Native peoples are courageously doing now to protect their rights and their culture, and what challenges the future may bring. Highly recommended.

Leading activist/scholar writing from among the Anishinaabeg (Ojibwe) of northern Minnesota, Winona LaDuke brings to all of us the ecological wisdom of Native Americans.

The sacred has to be "recovered" by "naming and claiming" a people's land, its holy sites, and its "relatives" among other creatures (such as sturgeon, horse, and manoomin or wild rice).

In a splendid blend of wit, good humor, necessary polemic, personal experience (not only as Founding Director of the White Earth Land Recovery Project, but also as world traveler), and copious research, this book lays down its assertive challenge to a dehumanizing materialism that has relegated "the sacred" to an allegedly peripheral irrelevancy.

LaDuke's book describes here how the Native American community has begun to "heal itself from the ravages of the past." Vigorous pro-active efforts emerge in her stories about naming and claiming what is sacred to that community.

Heart-wrenching and heart-warming. Winona LaDuke's straightforward descriptions of how the indigenous plant, animal, and human peoples of North America were decimated will take your breath away and her inspiring accounts of the steps that are being taken to rebuild and restore will have you breathing a sigh of relief.

I didn't realize how much I was blinded in regards to ecological wisdom as a native. This book has opened my eyes and encouraged me in how other native people are doing something about the injustice.

I think that I have read over 20 books on Native American/ American Indian studies in the past year. Reading history from a native viewpoint can be very disheartening.
Recovering the Sacred does share the bad news of what the European immigration did to native populations and culture. But it also shares the good news of what natives are doing to recover their culture, foods, faith, land etc. This must read was on the United Methodist Women's reading list in 2008.

This book gives us information about the spiritual aspect of the Indian peoples...of special interest to those of us who come from native american roots.